Why this CMO Requires Design School for Every New Hire, Whether it's in Their Job Description or Not

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by Jacob Solomon Jul 28, 2022 News
Why this CMO Requires Design School for Every New Hire, Whether it

Everything on the internet is visual. Ninety-one percent of audiences today seek out visual content as their primary source of learning about a brand or service. The visual generation is a broad consumer group that both creates and consumes visual content as a means of communication, education, and community building.

Our behavior around visual content has changed as it has become more popular. Roughly 65 percent of people were visual learners in 2004. Over the course of nearly two decades, that number has increased to 86 percent. Our preference for visual communication has always been ingrained in us due to the fact that the human brain is 60,000 times faster than text. It makes sense that our reliance on visual information would evolve as we meet that innate demand.

It's not just a marketing or sales tool for engaging and educating external audiences, it's also a means of communicating within professional organizations, and throughout our personal lives as well. This has led employers to expect some level of visual literacy among their employee base, assuming that almost anyone within the business should be capable of developing great visuals from day one. Even if design isn't in a worker's job title, they need to keep their design skills up to date.

Kitschke knows the problem and knows how to fix it. He believes that in today's visual economy, companies should offer design literacy training as a part of the first day of work, so that the onus of training and education is not on employees but on the employer. It's natural for a company to prioritize this, but it's an opportunity that every organization should take advantage of.

The constraints of the new normal are remote. The majority of knowledge workers are now hybrid, meaning that visuals are more important than ever. The power of visuals has never been greater. Design-forward businesses generate two times the returns of their peers because the way that businesses present their brand both internally and external matters. Even if they aren't in a design focused role, design literacy will become an increasingly important skill for job seekers and employees.

All new hires should attend an official design school. A framework for creating slides with a narrative versus information mindset is one of the first things taught to new hires. This makes it easier for employees to succeed when presenting their first presentation.

The program has been so popular within the organization that Canva created a more robust and publicly available design school for anyone wishing to grow their skills. There are a lot of courses on design theory that can be applied to any graphic design solution.

Upfront design training should take advantage of what's already available. A few hours of training can give new hires a chance to learn about the organization's brand guidelines. Rather than expecting more seasoned employees to police all content, this helps protect the brand.

Organizations that want to thrive in today's visual world need to invest in continually upskilling their team. In the past, this has included attending design conferences from CreativePro or Adobe, as well as on-site training with experts in design literacy. You can keep learning on the job, from sending out weekly "design tip" emails to scheduling monthly office hours with design pros.

Success in the modern workplace is dependent on the ability to read. Companies that embrace this new normal are more likely to succeed. While companies still rely on PowerPoint layout suggestions as the only means to empower design savvy among their employees, they are letting a golden opportunity slip by.